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5 THE THIRD SECTOR

Introduction

5.1 This section addresses the role of the third sector in working with public bodies to meet the disability equality duty. This section does not cover the general benefits of volunteering, nor does it comment on the range of bodies across Scotland that contribute to activities of volunteering or which work with the third sector.

5.2 This section will relate primarily to the third sector and its partnership with local authorities with reference to local authority disability equality schemes. It should be noted that while the generic term 'third sector' is used in this section, this covers a range of organisations ranging from large non-governmental organisations to very small local support groups. There are also organisations which are disability focussed organisations and those that are third sector organisations that are non-disability specific but may provide or engage significantly for disabled individuals or communities.

Background: wider policy context and evidence

Wider policy context

5.3 The general and specific duties of the disability equality duty apply to any public authority. However private companies and third sector organisations are also subject to the general duty where they perform a public function. Public bodies that procure services from third sector organisations can expect third sector organisations to comply with the disability equality duty for the services provided to those public bodies.

5.4 The third sector is a key employer and service provider in Scotland. The Local Government (Scotland) Act 2003, which set up community planning processes, provided the third sector and voluntary groups with a key partnership role to work with statutory and other community groups to develop frameworks for making public services more responsive to community needs. The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities ( COSLA) provided guidance in 2003 setting out a mainstreaming agenda for community planning. This was a useful guide to assist partnerships develop community plans and other forms of partnership activity such as Regeneration Outcome Agreements or Community Health Plans with equalities in mind. This document was welcomed by the Disability Rights Commission and together with the Commission for Racial Equality and the Equal Opportunities Commission issued further guidance on community planning and the public sector duties ( CRE, DRC, EOC 2007).

5.5 The Scottish Parliament Inquiry report Removing Barriers and Creating Opportunities (Scottish Executive, 2006a) recognised the importance of third sector organisations in providing services and information for disabled people.

The Scottish Government's response to the Scottish Parliament's Inquiry on Disability acknowledged that partnership with a range of bodies including the third sector were important and in particular mentioned the following areas:

• the development of a national framework for supported employment for disabled people
• ensuring the needs of young disabled people are fully taken into account through the implementation of the 'More Choices, More Chances' initiative.
• provision of translation and interpreting services

The Scottish Parliament Inquiry report also recommended that the Government's Volunteering Strategy (Scottish Executive, 2004d) be reviewed to promote and encourage the participation of disabled people in volunteering.

5.6 Local authorities have significant links with the third sector, as purchasers of services and as partners such as in the provision of day care services or services for pupils with additional support needs (Scottish Council Foundation, 2004). For example, in the provision of day care services, local authorities run 65% of the centres, providing 74% of the places while the third sector runs 22% of the centres and provides 22% of the places. The private sector runs 9% of the centres, providing 4% of the places. (Scottish Council Foundation, 2004:82).

5.7 Local authorities as well as other public bodies rely on the third sector to provide advice and support in order to ensure its services are relevant to the public. For this reason it is particularly import that third sector organisations are given a role in the design of service. In this context, the third sector have an important role in assisting public bodies with consultation and involvement of disabled people.

Research and statistical evidence

5.8 The Scottish Household Survey Analytical Topic Report (Scottish Government, 2008b) restated the finding in the Scottish Executive's Volunteering Strategy (Scottish Executive, 2004d) that disabled people are less likely to volunteer than non-disabled people

5.9 A study between 2004-2005 undertaken by Volunteer Development Scotland with support from LEAD Scotland (Volunteer Development Scotland and LEAD Scotland 2005) also found that disabled people were under-represented in volunteering. They found that the majority of respondents had become involved in volunteering through word of mouth. Disabled people were more likely to take on committee, support and service provision volunteering roles and some saw volunteering as a way of gaining skills and improving their employability.

5.10 Barriers to volunteering ranged from practical barriers to attitudinal barriers. There were also individual barriers such as an individual's fluctuating levels of health or confusion about how volunteering might affect welfare benefit arrangements. Overall, organizations with a disability focus provided more conducive organizational experiences for disabled volunteers that those that were generic volunteering organizations.

5.11 The Scottish Council of Voluntary Organisations conducted research in 2002 on behalf of the Government to review access panels in Scotland. ( SCVO, 2002). The key function of access panels is to improve disabled people's access to the built environment. Membership of the access panels consisted of disabled people mainly as individuals or from voluntary organisations and local authority officers with responsibility for the planning of local buildings. The purpose of the review was to assess how much the work of the access panels was valued by disabled people, their organisations and other key stakeholders such as architects, building control inspectors and others who use their services.

5.12 The review made several recommendations for further strengthening and supporting the panels. These included; funding of a national umbrella organisation; increased funding of local panels to support and develop the involvement of disabled people; action to ensure the role of local authority access officer is given more formal recognition and support; and further work to promote to disabled people the rights provided to them by the Disability Discrimination Act.

5.13 An umbrella organisation for access panels, the Scottish Disability Equality Forum, has been established. The Scottish Disability Equality Forum is a membership organisation open to all disability organisations and individuals with any type of impairment. The organisation is user-led and has commissioned a range of research looking at the experiences of disabled people of services. Some of these include documenting the experiences of wheelchair users of health service provision (Council on Disability, 2005), examining the extent of good practice in volunteer management (Volunteer Development Scotland and LEAD Scotland, 2005), detailing the learning needs of access panels (Scottish Disability Equality Forum, 2007) and the involvement of access panels in community planning (MacDonald et al, 2008).

5.14 A key issue to emerge from recent research relating to access panels is the need to support and enhance existing training for access panel members. In particular, there is a need to develop the capacity of panel members to influence service provision. There is room for further development of communities of practice to address issues, identity strategies and solutions. In addition, there continue to be barriers to participation in access panels by disabled people, linked to geographical location and support needs (Scottish Disability Equality Forum, 2007).

5.15 As shown in Table 4, MacDonald et al (2008) found that of the twenty-three local authorities responding to their online survey, twenty reported having access panels, with fifteen of these panels being involved in community planning.

Table 4: Responses from local authorities relating to access panels

Source: MacDonald et al (2008) The Involvement of Access Panels in Community Planning, p6

5.16 The level of influence of panels varied from those that were seen by local authorities as highly valuable and participative to those which were up and running and 'available for consultation'. Transport and the built environment were the most commonly reported areas for involvement and discussion for the fifteen panels. Other areas that panels indicated they had involvement with were around issues of countryside access, website development, sport and leisure and health and well-being.

5.17 MacDonald et al. (2008) identified three categories of distinct panel groupings:

• panels who see themselves as partners in community planning and are recognised as such by the local authority
• panels who are aware of community planning and involved to some extent, with acknowledgement by the local authority
• panels who are not involved in community planning at all, though they may be aware of it

5.18 The Scottish Government has also commissioned a mapping exercise of how disability groups in Scotland engage with public authorities. This research is ongoing and is being carried out by the Quarriers and Lucy Johnston Research. The research concentrates upon identifying groups and organisations within Scotland that (a) are set up to represent and/or work for and with disabled people and (b) which provide services and support primarily for disabled people. This research may provide further insight into how the third sector currently supports and benefits from a partnership with public authorities.

5.19 It is estimated that at the end of 2006, around 32% of adults in Scotland engage in some form of formal volunteering and 74% of adults in Scotland have volunteered informally between 2005-2006 (Volunteer Development Scotland, 2007). While the Volunteer Development Scotland report breaks down the profile of volunteers by age, gender, geography and socio-economic groups, there are no statistics related to disability. Similarly, the Scottish Household Survey provides statistics relating to age and gender and volunteering but there are no statistics relating to disability. The Scottish Government High Level Summary of Equality Statistics does not record data relating to voluntary organisations or volunteering.

Reporting on progress towards equality of opportunity

Introduction

5.20 The third sector are key partners of local authorities but disabled people remain less likely to volunteer and to play an active role within the third sector that those without a disability. Barriers to activism are not just those of physical access but include those resulting from attitudinal issues. More needs to be done not just to encourage disabled people to volunteer but also how the generic third sector can mainstream disability issues far more robustly into their policies and practices.

5.21 This section drawing primarily from local authority disability equality schemes and action plans looks at areas where progress is evident.

Areas where progress is evident

5.22 Progress is evident in the following areas:

• Partnership and involvement
• Sharing of expertise and resources

Partnership and involvement

5.23 Many local authorities have developed partnerships with third organisations particularly in the area of community planning and safety partnerships, via service user/carers forums, through access panels and as members of the authority's Disability Equality Steering Groups.

5.24 One area where the third sector has been a key partner has been in helping public bodies such as local authorities improve their consultation and involvement with disabled people. A review of all local authority disability equality schemes show that about half of these are, or are beginning to, involve disabled people in their impact assessment and Community Planning processes. The duty would appear to have established disabled people as an important community of interest in public services.

5.25 There are a range of examples from local authority schemes that demonstrate the variety of partnerships with voluntary organisations and the following are not an exhaustive list but provide a flavour of those diverse partnerships:

• Aberdeen Council works with Aberdeen Action on Disability and the Disability Advisory Group on Neighbourhood Community Planning.
• Argyll and Bute Council works with People and Agencies Coming Together ( PACT), Wheels of Change, access panels and community care fora to ensure that citizen panels include disabled people as well as encouraging disabled people to have active roles in civic life. The work aims to help disabled people engage in local authority policy development.
• East Lothian Council in conjunction with East Lothian Community Care Forum holds bi-monthly meetings to foster a two-way dialogue about service provision and improvement. There have been discussions on accessible housing, improved transportation and advocacy services.
• Edinburgh Council organises a series of employment fairs for disabled communities to encourage enterprise, employability and volunteering.
• Fife Council works with Fife Independent Disability Network and Fife Employability Network to identify and remove the main barriers to accessing Fife Council Services.
• Inverclyde Council works with the Inverclyde Community Care Forum, Inverclyde Council on Disability and Inverclyde Carers to increase uptake and promotion of council services.
• Glasgow Council collaborates with Deaf Connections to support disabled people to gain sporting qualifications. It also worked with the Royal National Institute of Blind People ( RNIB) to develop the first radio station in Europe run by and for blind and partially sighted people.
• With Voluntary Action Orkney, Orkney Council organised a meeting with disabled communities to discuss gaps in provision. The consultation identified a need for more opportunities for leisure activities for disabled young people. This concern is now a part of the Orkney Council disability equality scheme.
• Renfrewshire Council collaborates with Renfrewshire Council for Voluntary Services ( RCVS) to encourage more disabled people to become involved in volunteering.

Sharing of expertise and resources

5.25 The sharing of knowledge and expertise has been another area where

there are clear developments. The following, again while not an exhaustive list, provides examples of how public authorities and the third sector share expertise and resources to better meet the requirements of the disability equality duty:

• West Dunbartonshire Council utilises its research capacity to map a disability profile of the area to broaden understanding of disability issues, as well as assisting the knowledge base of local agencies to plan more effectively and appropriately for disabled people and communities.
• Care services for people who are disabled or who have a long-term illness are organised in partnership with McMillan Cancer Support through the Money Matters initiative.
• Dumfries and Galloway Council provides an interpretation service for community languages including British Sign Language which is open for third sector organisations to utilise.
• Edinburgh Council provides training to third organisations, including those serving disabled people, on developing a multi-equalities scheme and conducting equality impact assessments.
• West Lothian Council works in partnership with Disability West Lothian, Ace Advocacy and the Mental Health Advocacy Project to involve disabled people in locality planning. As part of this, the council offers capacity building opportunities to voluntary organisations which are disability-led or which work with disabled communities to develop skills, knowledge, infrastructure and resources about locality planning.

5.26 In summary, it is difficult to identify with certainty what has changed as a result of the implementation of the disability equality duty. There has always been a strong relationship between local authorities and third sector organisations whether as purchasers or partners. However, what is noticeable has been the increased involvement of disabled people as advisors, helping local authorities shape policy and provision.

Areas where progress is less evident

5.27 The following are areas where progress has been less evident:

• Encouraging disabled people into public life
• Better integration of access panels into community planning
• Procurement as an influencer for change

Encouraging disabled people into public life

5.28 Data about how public authorities are working with the range of third sector organisations to encourage disabled people either into volunteering opportunities or into other forms of participation in public life is less well documented. While some local authorities provide information within their schemes and action plans about encouraging disabled people into volunteering, these are in the minority rather than the majority.

Better integration of access panels into community planning

5.29 MacDonald et al's report (2008) The Involvement of Access Panels in Community Planning indicates that community planning may be a useful mechanism for involving disabled people in setting agendas. However, as discussed by the Scottish Council Foundation (2004) this potential has not been fully realized. Only about 50% of disability equality schemes refer to access panels.

Procurement as an influencer for change

5.30 Whilst two thirds of local authorities recognise the importance of setting terms and conditions for procurement which will lead to service improvements for disabled people, only a minority report the existence of monitoring procedures to ensure these are met. The issue of procurement is described in greater detail under the section on local authorities in 2f.

5.31 There is no information on how public authorities might have used procurement as a mechanism for seeking advice or innovative suggestions from the third sector contractors on how the public authority might better meet its disability equality duty in arranging for the provision of works, goods and services.

5.32 To summarise, procurement is a framework that could be used to greater effect to ensure that third sector agencies, particularly those which do not provide specifically for disabled people, are assisted through a condition of grant to pay greater regard to the key tenets of the Disability Discrimination Act. This would enable any future report to better assess what progress has been made as a result of the disability equality duty.

Categories of impairment

5.33 The most common disabilities mentioned in relation to access panels are related to issues of mobility. Actions to address the needs of people with physical impairments were most widespread with some mentioning learning difficulties and sensory impairment. Other forms of disability were less frequently mentioned.

Consultation and involvement

5.34 In addition to involvement in the production of disability equality schemes, there are many other ways in which individuals can be involved in local communities, for example, through involvement in community-based or voluntary organisations; informal connections with and through families, friends and neighbours; public appointments and elected positions (Scottish Council Foundation 2004). Thirty per cent of all adults, and 41% of disabled adults, say that they do not feel involved in their local community (Scottish Executive, 2004a). Significant differences in levels of volunteering are also reported. Disabled adults were significantly less likely to work as a volunteer, with only 17 % providing help to clubs, charities, campaigns or organisations in an unpaid capacity over the previous twelve months, compared with 28% of non-disabled adults.

5.35 The majority of local authorities have made progress towards engaging with disabled employees and service users, disability groups, disability fora and access panels. Citizens' panels and trade unions have been consulted by around one third of local authorities. Several local authorities are using National Standards for Community Engagement (Scottish Executive 2006f) as a guide to their work.

5.36 However, only around half of disability equality schemes mention the involvement of access panels, supporting MacDonald et al. (2008)'s argument that local authorities need to engage more proactively with access panels and disability groups and individuals as equal partners.

5.37 The nature of involvement also requires consideration. For example, members of access panels need to be treated as active partners rather than passive respondents and action is required at local level.

Summary and conclusions

5.38 There is recognition by local authorities of the importance of the third sector in assisting them to meet their obligations under the disability equality duty. The majority of local authorities have tried to put in place a range of methods to consult and involve disabled people, for example, organising equality fora, access panels, citizen panels and focus groups. Many have gone beyond consultation to active involvement.

5.39 However, there is still room for improvement particularly for authorities where access panels or equivalents are under utilised or not utilised. There are areas where disabled people's views and suggestions could be better represented such as within community planning partnerships.

5.40 There is a need for local authorities to consider how the procurement process could be made more key to the effective implementation of the disability equality duty in order to optimise the public authority's own ability to meet their obligations under the disability equality duty. Equally, the procurement process could b

e a mechanism to formally seek advice from third sector contractors for advice and innovative suggestions on how the authority might improve its own delivery of services to better meet the disability equality duty. The Third Sector Task Group which involves COSLA, SOLACE, SCVO and the Scottish Government is progressing a number of highly relevant work streams in relation to partnership working and funding, including procurement issues, within the context of Community Planning Partnerships and Single Outcome Agreements. This will also provide a useful forum for making further progress around the implementation of the DED.

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